


My Name Is Eleven

by snowzone5



Category: Stranger Things (TV 2016)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, F/M, Mileven, Short One Shot
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-15
Updated: 2019-07-15
Packaged: 2020-06-29 01:48:00
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 764
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19820023
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/snowzone5/pseuds/snowzone5
Summary: Jane Hopper reads a story in class.





	My Name Is Eleven

**Author's Note:**

  * For [TooFondOfFandoms](https://archiveofourown.org/users/TooFondOfFandoms/gifts).



> Happy Birthday!! You know who.

“Ok, class. Over the weekend I asked you to write a short auto-biographical story. You could have written about yourself or about a character you’d like to be, I know that will appeal to the Dungeons and Dragons fans we have here.”

The teacher looked at the Party, she expected to get their game characters and she was ok with that as long as they were creative about it. She fully expected they had coordinated their stories so it was going to be an entertaining class.

“Does anyone want to volunteer to go first?" To her complete surprise Jane Hopper put up her hand.

The teacher could see that Jane looked over to Mike. The teacher almost missed his imperceptible nod, but Jane saw it and smiled. She walked tentatively up to the front of the class.

Jane was a shy girl, but the teacher knew that she was friends with the Party, and more importantly Mike Wheeler’s girlfriend. As the new girl in Hawkins Middle, and with her almost buzzed hair it was important that she had friends. She could do a lot worse than Mike for a boyfriend to be sure.

Jane cleared her throat, and began speaking:

“My name is Eleven.”

“I was born as the result of an experiment, and lived the first eleven or twelve years of my life in a lab. I was forced to wear a hospital gown. I never had nice clothes.

I didn’t have a very good education, and I was always hungry. I had no home, and I was not loved.

One day I had enough. I had to get out. I did not know where I was, and I had no place to go but I needed to escape from the lab.

The first person I met, was nice to me. He gave me tasty food and ice-cream and a t-shirt to wear. It wasn’t much but it was better than the lab clothes.

But the bad men were after me, and he paid the price for helping me. I had to escape once again.

That night it rained. I was soaked in the storm. My bare feet were freezing. I was so cold and scared. I couldn’t stop crying from the lightning and thunder.

I was found by a small group of boys. One of them immediately gave me his jacket, and took me to his house. He gave me soft, warm and dry clothes, and he built me a blanket fort.

Even though the storm was bad outside, I slept in a warm bed this boy had made for me.

This boy, let’s call him Mike. He gave me food. He let me sleep in his blanket fort every night. He told me what a friend was. The boys were my friends. 

He told me what a promise was. He made promises to me. He  _ kept _ his promises to me. He keeps  _ every _ promise he makes to me.

He told me I was pretty. Every girl wants to hear that from the guy she likes. He almost kissed me that day. I wanted him to kiss me so much my heart hurt.

When he did kiss me, I was surprised. He took my breath away, I guess that’s what a first kiss will do, but  _ all _ his kisses take my breath away.

I had an accident that night, I was able to say goodbye to Mike, but it was almost a year before I saw him again.

In that year I knew what it means to have your heart in that much pain. He told me that he never gave up on me. He told me that he never wanted to lose me again. I promised that he would never lose me.

I know now that heart pain is love.”

Jane ran a hand over her short-cropped hair.

“My name is Eleven and I am loved.”

Jane looked up from the paper she was reading. Two tears made their way down her cheek.

“I love you Mike.”

The class room was stunned into silence. Mike got out of his chair and hurried to the front of the classroom. The teacher saw tears in his eyes also. 

“I love you too, Eleven.”

“That was a lovely story, Jane.” The teacher said quietly. She would not critique a story written from the heart. No matter what it's faults were.

The whole class clapped. A few of the rowdier boys whistled.

The teacher wiped her eyes and hurried out of the room.

Mike just stood there and held El until the classroom was empty.


End file.
